Deedee Cummings's Blog, page 13

The Beauty in Rocks and Such

Some of the most beautiful works of art come in the form of tile mosaics, especially those found in many Middle Eastern countries. The artists take sometimes hundreds of colors of tile and pattern them across a wall or a building or a minaret and create a breathtaking work of art. While you can find solid color architecture that is beautiful, they don’t catch one’s eye quite like a mosaic.

Aside from the colors and patterns, it is remarkable to think of the time and effort that went into laying each tile or even coming up with the design in the first place. Tile mosaics are a testament to what beautiful things happen when we put different items together.

If you’re not an art lover, but a foodie, consider the deliciousness that happens when you blend spices together. There is nothing better than a sweet dessert that has a touch of salty in it. Sometimes all sweet or all salty is too much, but a little bit of both makes it delectable!

Some people are collectors. They love bells, elephant statues, or baseball caps. Even if they love one thing, their collections do not carry hundreds of identical pieces. A person who collects bells may have glass bells, bells from different vacation spots, bells made by hand, or bells covered in shells. It wouldn’t be interesting if all the bells (or elephant statues or baseball caps) were precisely the same, to the collector or the friends who see the collection.

We often enjoy diversity in so many facets of our lives, like art or food, but we’re less apt to appreciate it when it comes to people.  We don’t consider the value that people from different backgrounds, parts of town, socioeconomic levels, or countries could have on our own enjoyment of life. Our lives are made more full and so much richer because of the unique experiences and perspectives each person we meet brings to our lives.

In Deedee Cummings’ book, Kayla: A Modern-Day Princess– Tough as Tulle, Kayla asks the question: “Why is everything different considered ‘special’ except when it comes to people?”

Consider your collection of friends and colleagues. Is it as diverse and enjoyable as our collections of rocks, flowers, or bells? If not, why, and what does this say to other people in your life, especially children? Your collection of friends should be as rich and diverse as any collection of memorabilia or art. Something to think about.

 

 

 

 

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The Best Things About Going to Author Events

Just because you’re a book lover doesn’t mean you have ever attended or see the benefit of attending an author event. Some might even say, “What’s the big deal? Why should I go to an author event- especially if I don’t know who the author is?”

Author Deedee Cummings at an author event in Lexington, Kentucky. These lucky kids received a copy of her book.

There are plenty of reasons to attend an author event at your local bookstore, school or library, but here are five:

1–It’s free.

The price of everything has gone up, especially eggs (or at least that’s what the memes have been saying), but the cost of most author events is FREE. If funds are tight, you can attend an author event and give yourself something to do as well as meet new people.

2–It’s educational.

You can learn a lot at an author event. Books are like exposing us to different worlds. Your whole mind can be lit up by new facts and information you will learn. You never know– you may even be inspired to write a book of your own!

3–It’s a way to support local libraries.

Attending author events hosted by your local library shows the library that you value what they do. (Libraries do all kinds of record-keeping to prove just how much value they provide to the community, including how many people attend their community events. This plays a role in their funding, including if they decide to write additional grants.)

4–It’s a way to support local book stores.

Even if you don’t buy a book at an author event, you may buy a coffee at the book store. Or you may remember the book store the next time you WANT to buy a book, even if it isn’t the book by that author whose event you attended. You are also contributing to their foot traffic which is always a plus. Your energy in the building is requested and appreciated!

5–It’s fun.

Author events are fun! The authors often share their writing misadventures (how the last chapter kept them up for three days in a row), or they tell anecdotes about their lives that we would never get from just reading their book. Sometimes an author event includes free food or a game. Chances are you will definitely find something that makes this worth your while.

There are so many more reasons to get up and get out and try something different. Give author visits a try!

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We Need Strong Female Protagonists in Kid Lit

We wrote in our last blog about awesome female authors. In the same way that we need to read books by female authors, we also need to see strong female protagonists in literature, especially children’s literature. It is about empowerment!

Books can be mirrors or windows. Female readers need to see their likeness reflected back to them, but they also to experience the lives of female readers who come from different backgrounds with different perspectives. Non-female readers need to be able to walk in the shoes of characters who have lives they can only begin to imagine.

It seems that sometimes people have negative views about spunky female child protagonists. You may remember there was some online discussion several years back about Junie B. Jones, the character in the series by Barbara Park. Some parents didn’t like her character because she was irreverent and outspoken, while others loved her for exactly those characteristics.

In honor of Women’s Month, we are happy to provide you with this amazing list of phenomenal female protagonists.

An absolutely phenomenal book is One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia, a story about three sisters who visited their mother in Oakland, California. Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern are an absolute hoot, but there is a serious thread that underpins the novel. They learn about the Black Panthers and about why their mother left the family when her youngest daughter was an infant. These sisters have a lot of personality; they stand up for each other but are also tender and open to new ideas.

When You Trap a Tiger by Tae Keller is the story of four women in Korea: a sick grandmother, a mother, and two daughters. Lily’s sister calls her a ‘quiet Asian girl,” and Lily begins to think that is all she is. But her grandmother’s illness helps her realize she is strong, like a tiger, inside and out.

Nnedi Okorafor’s Akata fantasy series tell the story of Sunny Nwazue, an Albino girl whose parents move from America to Nigeria, where her parents were born. Sunny makes friends, but also discovers some unique powers she has. It is her leadership and drive that propel the story.

Carole Boston Weatherford has created some amazing nonfiction picture books that show the lives of Black women who have made important contributions to the world, including Aretha Franklin in the book RESPECT: Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, and Fannie Lou Hamer in the book Voice of Freedom: Fannie Lou Hamer, Spirit of the Civil Rights Movement.

Finally, Deedee Cummings has created an entire series of books called Kayla: A Modern-Day Princess, based on the perseverance and talent of her own daughter, Kayla Pecchioni, who took her passion for singing and dance is now a performer on Broadway in New York City.

What books do you know of that can inspire young female readers? Share them with us!

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Female Authors Rock!

March 8 is International Women’s Day which is intended to celebrate women’s achievements be they social, economic, political, or cultural. At Make a Way Media, we love books so we wanted to take this opportunity to talk a little bit about some amazing female authors.

Did you know there was a time when women weren’t considered legitimate authors? If they were able to be published at all, it was under male pseudonyms! Thankfully, times have changed, and we now recognize and respect the important contributions women make to literature.

Zora Neale Hurston was an author but also an important anthropologist who documented the lives and culture of Black people in the rural south. Best known for Their Eyes Were Watching God, Hurston was an important figure in the Harlem Renaissance.

Toni Morrison was a Nobel Prize-winning author who was a professor at Princeton University. Her novels spanned decades and include The Bluest Eye and Sula.

Louis Erdrich is a Native American writer whose work has won the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award. Her books, including The Round House and The Sentence, have long introduced the experiences of Native American characters to a wider audience.

Elizabeth Acevedo is a young writer whose books of poetry have launched a renewed love affair with stories told in verse. She has a new book coming out in 2023 titled Family Lore.

Not every awesome female author is on the national stage (yet), but that doesn’t mean they aren’t creating some fabulous stories.

Erin Keane is editor in-chief at Salon.com and recently published a book of essays about her mother’s unusual childhood called Runaway: Notes on the Myths That Made Me.

Angela Jackson-Brown is a professor at Ball State University and the author of several novels in the same fictional universe. Her most recent is The Light Always Breaks.

Annette Saunooke Clapsaddle is a teacher in North Carolina who is the author of Even As We Breathe which received the Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award in 2021.

And, of course, we have to mention Deedee Cummings, founder of Make a Way Media, who writes about hope and empathy and has created a young, but fierce female protagonist in her Modern-Day K series of books about a young girl who pursues her dreams.

How will you celebrate  your favorite female authors?

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Enjoy Your Right to Read!

At the core of the First Amendment right to free speech, assembly, and religion is the right to free thought. We think (most of the time) before we speak. We think before we discuss our ideas and plans with others and decide to assemble. We think (and believe) which determines how or whether we perform religious activities. Freedom of thought is also connected to the freedom to read what we want and thereby develop our thoughts.

If you have elementary-age children, you’re probably already aware that March 2nd is National Read Across America Day (or the start of Read Across America Week). Many schools make this week full of fun for kids with reading at the center of everything. Children often get to dress in costume as a character from their favorite book. Guest readers or authors often come to schools in early March to share their love of books and reading.

It is important for parents to encourage reading during this week but also every week of the year.

It can be easy to dismiss reading if you’ve never been comfortable as a reader, but it is an important right you have that we can and should protect. Each year, there are efforts to ban certain books in schools and libraries across the US. According to a PEN America report, there were over 2,500 instances of individual books being banned from July 2021 to June 2022.

Efforts to stop reading in other countries means taking away girls’ ability to get an education. In Afghanistan, for example, the Taliban banned girls from attending elementary school in December 2022. Stopping education of course means stopping reading.

So how can you support reading efforts in schools and libraries even if you are or are not an avid reader?

1–Volunteer to read with school-age kids if your schedule allows. Whether this is in a group setting or working with individual students who need special reading assistance, your time can make a huge difference.

2–Donate used books to libraries, schools, and community organizations.

3–Support libraries by buying from their book sales which support their literacy efforts. Support authors by purchasing their books.

4–Support your library in other ways too. Some are so simple like just downloading books via Libby and other online sources. Libraries keep records of how many people use their services which can impact their funding.

5–Read in front of your children, even if it’s not books. Reading cereal boxes and magazines count!

There are so many ways to to support our right to read. These are just a few. Comment below with more ideas and let’s keep the list going. Reading is a fundamental right, but as with all rights, we must consciously work to protect them.

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Ways to Show Empathy

Showing empathy isn’t difficult, but it does require that we be intentional. Being intentional means that we focus our full attention.

The act of being intentional has become more difficult as our lives have become busier. We have devices and tools that take our attention away from what we’re doing and spread it out in multiple directions, in the same way light separates through a prism. Our attention, and intention, are no longer laser-focused.

So what can we do to focus our attention and become dedicated to showing empathy to others?

1–Turn your device(s) on silent and/or turn off notifications

We are so afraid of missing something on our phones, watches, tablets, and computers that we miss the things that are directly in front of us. Unfortunately, most of us have been on the receiving end when someone we’re speaking with gets distracted by their technology while we are mid-sentence. It feels like we are no longer important to them; their attention (and intention) has been removed from us and put on something else. If you know how that feels, try not to make others feel the same.

2– Keep advice to yourself and just listen

It is hard to not want to fix someone else’s problems, isn’t it? But most people just need a safe space to vent sometimes. They don’t really want you to swoop in and solve an issue because it’s not your issue to solve. Most people shut down as soon as the person listening to them says, “You know what you should do?”

3–Ask questions of others and yourself

When we’re with someone, whether it is a colleague, a friend, or our child, we should ask questions, especially if they’ve just told us about a problem they’re having. Asking questions and being curious shows that we are interested and we care.  Asking questions may also help the person figure out how to solve their own conflict. Consider asking, “Do you think there is a solution to this?” or “How are you planning to handle this?”

It is also important that we ask ourselves questions as a way to check-in with our goals and desires: “What is it YOU want in this moment?” or “Do you really need to be doing this?” The more distractions we have at our fingertips the more we have to practice being tuned out to those things and tuned in to those we care about. What are some tips and tricks that you use?

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How Books Teach Empathy

When we think about the purposes of writing, there are generally three categories: we write to inform, to entertain, and to persuade. As readers, we are the recipients of information, entertainment, and persuasion.

Stories have been a part of human history forever. Early humans told stories to explain a world that was confusing to them (inform). They told stories as warnings for things to watch out for (persuade), and they told stories to have fun (entertain). Even though many things have changed in our modern world, stories still serve these purposes.

Whether we are reading to learn, to see another side of things, or to just have fun, reading is a safe way to put ourselves in other people’s shoes (or in their thoughts or within their experiences). Reading allows us to get as close as we are able to understanding topics from someone else’s perspective. Reading allows us to experience empathy, which is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another person.

If a child reads a book about someone very different from her, she is immersed in a world that is foreign, but it always remains safe. She has agency and can take herself out of the book if she feels threatened or uncomfortable or even bored. She can give herself time to process something new if she needs it. Reading is the easiest and least dangerous way to explore this big, topsy-turvy world.

Reading a book about someone very different from her also gives her insights into the ways in which she and that character are the same. Maybe they are the same age or have similar family structures. Maybe they share a similar problem. Finding similarities means that the “stranger” in a book who at first seems completely different is really not so different after all.

Think about the books you’ve read that have opened your eyes to other people’s experiences. How did you become more empathetic towards those situations? If we are lucky, we grow and our lives are changed for the better.

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Valentine’s, Galentine’s, and You

February is the month of love, but it is kind of nice that it has become a month of all kinds of love, not just romantic love.

Romantic love is wonderful, of course. But not everyone has a romantic sweetheart, or maybe they’ve been married to their romantic sweetheart for 30 years and don’t muster up the lovey-dovey the way they used to.

Valentine’s Day has expanded over the years. It has become a time for parents to tell their kids they love them, and for teachers and their students to express care. It has become a time for the public to send notes to retirement communities. Our expressions of love have become more expansive.

Galentine’s Day on February 13 has become an important day for women to celebrate their female friendships, their girlfriends who have stuck by them even when their romantic relationships were on the rocks.

Even if you don’t buy roses and chocolates for others in February, it is a good idea to reflect on those you love and (hopefully) tell them why you love them. It’s also important to reflect on whether you are loving yourself as much as you love others. Empathy is not just something we need to show others. We must show more empathy for ourselves too. Parents of young children have an especially difficult time showing themselves empathy and love because raising children is exhausting; it is hard to carve out even one minute of time to focus on yourself. It’s hard, but necessary. 

So here are some easy ways to show the ones you love how you feel, including yourself:

1–Say “I’m sorry I hurt you.”

2–Grab someone’s hand and squeeze.

3–Smile a genuine smile.

4–Find the humor in situations.

5–Take a deep breath through your nose and exhale through your mouth.

6–Ask, “How are you?” And then stop to listen with your full self.

7–Read a book with your child (maybe Love Is or Heart by Deedee Cummings?)

8–Focus on something outside and see its beauty. (Yes, you can find it even in winter).

9–Stretch your body.

10–Go to bed 30 minutes earlier than you normally would.

Showing love to yourself and others doesn’t have to be a big Instagram-worthy production. It can be small. It can be simple. As long as it’s sincere, that is the most important thing.

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Thinking of Starting a Book Club? Here’s How!

We love books. All kinds of books. Novels and short stories. Fiction and picture books. The only problem with books is that we don’t have enough time to read them all!

A book club is a great way to delve even deeper into the world of book lovers. It is a lot of fun to start your own. Starting a book club doesn’t have to be intimidating, although it may feel that way.

Probably the most important step is to consider what you want your book club to be. Do you want to only read certain kinds of books? Do you want the group to be 50% book-discussion and 50% social, or would you prefer it be 90%/10%? Do you want to meet at public spaces or in people’s homes? Will it always be in your home or will you rotate homes? How often will you meet? Monthly? Quarterly? All fiction or all nonfiction? Having an idea about what you want will go a long way in helping ensure the book club is a success and that you are satisfied with what you create.

Once you have a firm idea of what you want your book club to be, the next step is finding people who want to be a part of it. You may already know friends from work or school who have mentioned an interest in a book club, and if you do, let them know your plans. If you run your plans by a few people and they don’t love some of your ideas, you may decide to tweak some things so that it is easier to get others to come on board.

The next step is to hold the book club and have realistic expectations about it (and maybe the first several book club meetings you have). Every endeavor, from having a child to launching a business, has a learning curve, and this is true for book clubs too. It may take a while to get into a groove. Some people who join may decide they can’t commit to the reading schedule or life events may get in everyone’s way occasionally, but the core of the group will be there routinely and they will be grateful for the little community you have made.

Communication is important to the success of a book club, whether that be keeping everyone in the loop as to when the next meeting is and what the selected book is or deciding as a group how you want to handle how (and how many) new members can join the club.

Remember, though, that a book club is about enjoying books. And having fun! If those two things are happening, your book club is a success! We hope you try a book club- either by starting one or attending one because they are a lot of fun.  At the 2022 Louisville Book Festival, we hosted a session called Extreme Book Clubbing! There is a lot of literature out there if you feel you need a little more guidance than we have given here. Book lovers love book clubs. Let us know if you try it!

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Don’t Miss World Read Aloud Day!

World Read Aloud Day is coming! Held this year on Wednesday, February 1st, and sponsored by Scholastic , World Read Aloud Day calls attention to the powerful act of just simply reading aloud.  Some of us may have unpleasant memories of having to read aloud in class during our school years. We may have felt awkward or embarrassed, especially if we struggled with a word and one of our peers corrected us. I remember that feeling of dread as I hid behind my book and murmured, “Don’t pick me, don’t pick me, don’t pick me,” as the teacher scanned the classroom looking for a “volunteer”.

But reading aloud is really important, especially when it comes to our children. When we were in school we missed the beauty of this simple act. We missed the point.

Reading aloud is powerful.  It shows our children that we value reading because we spend time reading books to them or listening to them read books to us. It allows us to act as characters in the book and change the sound of our voices which adds another layer of understanding to the meaning of the words and the layers of the story. Reading aloud can aid in building empathy for the characters in a book because children will hear the story and the dialogue in a much more realistic way.

Reading aloud is educational. There is an extreme benefit to reading the words in a book out loud. Young children understand the most basic elements of reading, such as the proper way to hold the book and that we read from left to right. Reading to a child gives you the ability to process in real-time with them the concepts they are learning from the book and any words they may not already know.

Reading aloud is necessary. Reading books aloud helps our children understand the flow and rhythm of language. Reading aloud helps children associate reading with someone special: YOU! That association will stick with them for the rest of their lives and make reading something they associate with warmth, fun, and love.

Reading aloud is easy. This is an activity the entire family can get behind. Remember in the old days when an entire family would gather around a radio? Make this a fun family event and invite the whole family to grab a snack or a warm cup of cocoa and make it an event.

As children get older, they may not be as willing to have you read aloud to them, but there is a way for a family to continue this habit: AUDIOBOOKS!  While technically, you aren’t reading aloud to them, they are being read aloud to which is still a plus.

If your family goes on a long car ride for vacation, download a free audiobook from your local library and play it in the car. It doesn’t have to be a 14-hour commitment; there are plenty of short audiobooks that a family could agree to listen to on the road. It is a way for kids to use the technology they love, yet the family is still together and participating in the same activity.

Another idea is to add a poem to the family celebrations in your household. On your child’s birthday, read them a quick poem that encompasses your love for them. Or maybe even find one that is a little irreverent. (Is there a poem about teenagers and their smelly socks??)

If your child loves to draw, build with Legos, or do puzzles, consider reading to them while they are doing this quiet activity. The beauty of reading aloud is you can do it anywhere.

Be sure to check out the schedule for the LIVE Read aloud sessions offered by Scholastic on this day. There will be some great authors on reading their books and it is all free!

How will your family commit or recommit to making reading aloud a priority and celebrate this very important World Read Aloud Day?

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